Rome was once the capital of the Italian Kingdom, and the seat of the Roman Catholic papacy, making it one of the most important cities in Western history. This was before there were two cities called Rome. Contents During the Iron Age, a powerful Etruscan civilization arose in the area around Rome and dominated the Italian peninsula until about 400 BC. Some evidence of this civilization was found when archaeologists opened a deep-water harbor, dating from about 1300 BC. Eventually, Rome became the capital of this area, which the Romans began to call Etruria. The Romans had a powerful navy to expand their empire across the Mediterranean. They defeated various tribes of the mainland, then moved north to Spain. The Carthaginians came to be more powerful, and then the Romans conquered them too. At one time, the Romans were so afraid of their Carthaginian rivals that they called them "the sons of the sea," and refused to travel by sea. Roman Colossal Head, The Capitoline Museum in Rome This fear of the sea gradually faded, and after another war, the Romans were forced to give up their possessions in Spain. After the Punic wars, they began to look for other enemies to conquer. One of the more powerful tribes in this new frontier was the Gauls, who lived in northern Italy. Rome, Gaul, and the Roman Empire The Gauls of central Italy (which is today in Italy) were mostly free men, without Roman citizenship, or any form of government. Because they knew they had no chance to unite together against the Romans, they didn't try. Instead, they were organized by a chieftain named Brennus in 390 BC. He brought with him a force of six hundred mercenaries and a few hundred regular soldiers. This horde was so strong that no one could stop it. Brennus gathered his force at the plain near Clusium, a little city in the center of Italy. He had taken over Rome in the same way as the Romans had taken over Carthage, by bribing the enemy's leader, but because he was a Gaul, he could not corrupt the Romans with gold. So, he bribed them with weapons. Roman Empire Colossal Head Brennus was determined to get what he wanted, and when his soldiers tried to take over the city by force, they were defeated. Brennus was annoyed, and went to take a nap at the Temple of Jupiter in the Capitol, or, as it is known in the English version of the Latin name, the Capitoline Museum. It is from this building that the big manor house in Rome's version of Sleeping Beauty's castle was likely taken. Brennus was killed by some of his men, who had no love for him, while he was sleeping. He was buried at the tomb of two deities called Lares, and many Romans believed this was what caused the Tiber River to flood. The Gauls quickly got tired of Rome and headed back toward their home area. One of the Gauls had a brother named Proxilaus, who was a Roman nobleman. He suggested that they abandon Rome, which had a large fleet of merchant ships. It was well protected by high walls. So, the Romans were not willing to fight to protect their city, and the Gauls were not interested in ruling over them. Rome continued to grow in power, and the Romans found that they were very successful in the art of trade. Many people came to Rome because of the money to be made. The growing wealth of the city was celebrated by many poets, including Virgil. The people of Rome could not know it at the time, but the greatness of their city was only beginning. They were about to embark on the most exciting and prosperous epoch in Rome's history. The Romans made more and more laws, and finally formed a series of courts to hear their disagreements and give them direction. In 664 BC, Romans were able to make a decision with the help of their powerful new leader, Julius Caesar. The city of Rome was in danger from the tribes living on the surrounding hills. The Romans wanted to move their Capitol to a better place, to be safer from enemies. With a great victory, Caesar led the way to build a new Capitol. The Eternal City The Romans were quite pleased with their new position. They built another wall and a new military outpost called the "Servian" wall. The city then became known as Roma Urbs Nova. A year later, the military fortress became a regular city when it was named Roma Caput Mundi, Rome the Capital of the World. Rome became the center of the growing Roman Empire. Some people believe that this story of moving the Capitol is true because it was not allowed for any other city to build a Capitol until after the fall of Rome in 476 AD. More than 150 years after that, the Emperor Hadrian built a temple, the biggest building in the ancient world, dedicated to Venus in the Forum area. In 27 BC, Emperor Octavian Caesar dedicated Rome as the city of Caesar. Soon it would become the city of Rome. Rome became a city of almost unimaginable wealth. It had an enormous number of statues, inscriptions and buildings dedicated to Roman gods. On August 24, 1849, just after midnight, Emperor Napoléon Bonaparte (1796 - 1873) entered Rome, with his armies at his back and a procession of Roman dignitaries, some with their families and pets. They took over the Pope's palace and used it for the residence of the French Emperor. After Napoleon was defeated and taken prisoner, he was sent home, but when he returned to Rome, he was exiled, and Rome once again became the capital of the ancient Roman Empire. Some of the ancient relics that have survived to our times are the remains of a colossal head of Augustus Caesar, two of the famous gilded bronze equestrian statues of Marcus Aurelius and Marcus Cocceius Nerva, one of which is in Rome (Vatican) and the other one is in Budapest, but there are two more in Spain. (see pictures) These statues represented Marcus Aurelius and his son. Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, standing at over eight feet tall, is now in Madrid, Spain. The statue is the best preserved of all the statues of Roman emperors and is one of the most important pieces of sculpture in all the museums of the world. The huge sculpture is exhibited at the Royal Palace in Madrid. The other famous statues are on display at the Archaeological Museum of Rome. In 1842, some French sculptors were hired to create an equestrian monument for Napoleon III. That was followed by the colossal statue of Marcus Aurelius, completed in 1885, on the 150th anniversary of the founding of Rome as a colony. Since the statue of Marcus Aurelius was the last, he is considered the founder of the Roman Empire. Roman Colosseum From 200 AD to 300 AD, Rome fell from its splendor to a time of chaos. The Senate and the city no longer could function, and Rome was once again without a leader. It was during this time that the barbarian tribes descended from the hills around Rome. The Romans turned to their army, and in order to raise new armies, they made treaties with the barbarians. They promised them land for their tribes, if they were defeated. The emperor Trajan (AD 98-117) defeated one tribe called the Dacians, and in exchange for their surrender he gave them land in Macedonia. In 115 AD, while trying to keep the empire together, Marcus Aurelius made an important discovery. He began to see the importance of the new world on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. He sent ambassadors to the "barbarians." They met them in Spain. The Barbarians were so impressed that they said they would surrender if Marcus Aurelius could produce an image of Hercules. (They were the greatest warriors because they worshiped Hercules. They had no idea about the legend of Zeus in Greece.) This is the birth of the legend of Hercules. The Romans built a magnificent theater, the Colosseum, in Rome. Later, they discovered that most people went to see their shows in the arena. Rome began to decline at this time, and there was no one to defend the Colosseum, so it was raided by a large gang of bandits who lived outside Rome. A bandit gang from a tribe called Vandals had set